Just The Usual Christmas Cheer
by AwkwardFudgeball
Summary: Barry noticed STAR Labs was a little light on the Christmas decorations...and he's off to do something about it. What could go wrong? *COMPLETE*


**AN: Let's lighten up the mood with some holiday fun, shall we not?**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own the Flash!**

Christmas was right around the corner, at only ten days away. But at STAR Labs, the only festive thing was a very small Christmas tree. Charlie Brown's tree outshone this one. Normally there wouldn't be time to "deck the halls", but there hadn't been a single meta in over a month. STAR Labs became somewhat quiet as they awaited another threat. If there was a threat on the way, it was slow in coming. Barry realized this as he watched the tiny lights on the tree sputter and a few of them lose their glow.

"Hey guys; why don't we decorate for Christmas this year? I mean, go all out?" Barry said turning to face Cisco and Caitlin. Caitlin looked up from her crossword puzzle, and Cisco stopped picking at his thumbnail. Barry started to move around, "I mean, we could put some lights right here...and we could definitely afford a bigger tree. There's not even a manger scene in here!"

"He has a point," Cisco said, watching the snow fall lightly outside and looking at the only vaguely cheery cortex.

"What do you say, Caitlin?" Barry asked, "Will you assist us in turning STAR Labs all holly jolly?"

"Let's holly jolly it up," Caitlin said with a smile, closing her never-ending book of crossword puzzles and setting it aside.

"Alright then," Barry said, excitement bubbling inside him. He felt like a little kid around Christmas, "Let's get started!"

Barry had flashed out of the room mere seconds after, leaving the other two in the cortex.

"Well, I guess now we wait for him to get back," Cisco said, looking at the papers Barry had thrown around the room upon his exit.

The minutes ticked by, and half an hour later Barry returned with a single shopping bag.

"I thought we were 'going all out'?" Cisco asked as Barry set the plastic bag on the counter.

"I left the rest downstairs. Be back in a flash," Barry said, zipping out of the room.

"That was a terrible pun!" Cisco shouted as Barry came back in with a couple more bags and had flashed back out.

The eighth (and final) time Barry flashed back in, he set down a box with some difficulty.

"That's a big ass box!" Cisco said, walking over to it, "A twelve foot Christmas tree? Are you insane?"

"Why not? We've got tall ceilings," Barry stated simply, already working on un-stringing a tangle of multi-color lights, "Help me out, would you, Cisco?"

Cisco grabbed the other end of the string and quickly growing pissed off. After they finished with that, they attempted to string the lights around the window while Caitlin issues warnings like "don't fall" or "be careful".

"Tree time," Barry said, zooming to unbox the tree.

"Hold it, Flash," Caitlin said, clasping his wrists in her hands to stop him. She released him, "Not without music,"

Soon STAR Labs was filled with Christmas carols, Barry's quiet, calm singing, Cisco's top-of-the-lungs off-key singing, and Caitlin's humming.

"IT'S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS!" Cisco sang very, very loudly as he hung the first ornament on the tree, "EVERYWHERE YOU GO!"

After several minutes of stacking the tree and snapping it into place (all of which could've been avoided if Cisco didn't have an allergy to ninety percent of the trees known the man), it came to the final piece: the star.

Now, keep in mind that the tree was twelve feet tall, and Barry was left standing on his toes on the only ladder STAR Labs owned (which was unfortunately only four feet tall).

"Careful not to fall, Barry!" Caitlin reminded him, peering anxiously at the teetering latter.

"I'll be fine, Cai -" Barry didn't get to finish his sentence, because the ladder wobbled precariously beneath him as he stretched to put the star on top. His feet slipped upon trying to gain his own balance, and he crashed to the ground at a very, _very_ unfortunate angle. A snap was accompanied by a scream and a groan.

"See, if you would've been more careful..." Caitlin said, but she was nonetheless looking over Barry's awkwardly bent leg.

"Dammit. You broke yourself, Barry!" Cisco said, setting the ladder against the wall.

"Good thing I heal quickly," Barry said, attempting to sit up with a grunt, "You don't have to put a cast on me, do you?"

"We have to make sure it mends properly. Do you want a blood clot?" Caitlin said, and within twenty or so minutes Barry's leg was adorned in a normal beige cast that Cisco had stuck reindeer stickers on to add to the festivity.

The whole leg breaking incident put a damper on things, and they gave up on the tree topper for the time being. Instead they had all gathered around the starless tree with mugs of hot chocolate. Starting to drift off in the serene atmosphere, Cisco's mug slipped from his hands...and shattered on the floor, jolting him awake.

"SHIT!" He yelled as a few slivers of steam erupted from the chocolaty puddle among broken glass.

"What's all the racket?' Dr. Wells said, rolling into the cortex where Barry was sitting in a festive cast, Cisco was cleaning up a smashed mug of hot chocolate, and the tree was about eleven feet taller than the original, "...do I even want to know?"

"Just the usual Christmas cheer, Dr. Wells,"


End file.
